BBC airs 'expert' Apple analysis from man mistaken for pundit

CNN is reporting today that a fellow who showed up at the BBC’s headquarters to interview for a job in the broadcaster’s IT division, was mistakenly escorted to the set of BBC News 24, where he was interviewed for his opinion on the outcome of the Apple Corps v. Apple Computer dispute. The gentleman, a Congolese émigré who had the same first name as the man the BBC had intended to interview, was under the impression that this was a test of his general knowledge ; and while he may not have known he was on-air, his interviewer apparently didn’t get any clue that he wasn’t a professional pundit.

"Were you surprised by this verdict today ?" [Karen] Bowerman asked.

"I’m very surprised to see the verdict come on me because I was not expecting that," he said in a heavy French accent, blinking in the studio lights. "When I came, they told me something else."

Nonplussed, he pressed on, growing more confident in his punditry as the interview progressed. He gamely delivered his opinion on the future of music downloads and cyber cafes following the landmark verdict.